A chord has to have a minimum of 3 notes, called a chord triad. A chord triad consists of 2 intervals. The smallest interval in western music is the half-step. On a piano keyboard, this would be playing 2 notes without any other notes in between them. B - C, C - C#, E - F, Gb - G, are all examples of half-step intervals.

The next largest interval is the minor third. A minor third consists of 1 1/2 steps. The interval which is larger than the minor third is the major third, which consists of 2 whole steps (or 4 half steps).

The following chart shows the intervals starting from G.

Interval

Name

G - Ab

half-step

G - A

whole-step

G - Bb

minor third

G - B

major third

* There are more intervals than the ones listed, but for purposes of learning chords, only the half-step, whole-step, minor third and major third intervals will be covered.

There are only 4 types of chord triads; major, minor, augmented and diminished. These chords are defined by their intervals.

The following is a chart of the various G chord triads, with the notes of the chord and interval names listed:

G Chord

Notes of Chord

Order of Intervals

G Major

G B D

Maj-3rd Min-3rd

G Minor

G Bb D

Min-3rd Maj-3rd

G Augmented

G B D#

Maj-3rd Maj-3rd

G Diminished

G Bb Db

Min-3rd Min-3rd

Knowing the intervals which make up chords, will allow a person to find chords without any additional aids.

To apply chords to music, first find out the key of the song. Then by harmonizing the corresponding scale, or simply using the number system, one can find all of the chords which work for a given key.

An example would be if a song is in the key of A major, it scale would be:

A B C# D E F# G#

Any chord which contains notes derived from this scale will work in this key. So, A major 9 (A C# E G# B) works since all it's notes are derived from the A major scale. Db major (Db F Ab) won't work within the key. But try it anyhow, it may work in the song even though it doesn't fit the key. Don't be afraid to place chords in a song which aren't derived from it's key(s). In other words, don't limit yourself to the key of a song/progression. Keys are to be thought of as guidelines.

Chords are derived from numbering the scale degrees of the corresponding root. (C=1, D=2, E=3, etc.). When the notes of the scale go into another octave, the numbers continue.

C D E F G A B C D E F G A
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

A chord triad will contain the 1, 3 and 5. A Seventh chord will be numbered, 1, 3, 5, 7. Here is list of the basic chord names and their corresponding numbers:

Number of notes

Name

1 3 5

Triad

1 3 5 7

Seventh

1 3 5 7 9

Ninth

1 3 5 7 9 11

Eleventh

1 3 5 7 9 11 13

Thirteenth

Notice the pattern. The notes of all chords (except suspended and 6th chords) are derived from choosing a tonic, and building the rest of the notes from the corresponding scale by skipping every other note of the scale.

Earlier, I demonstrated how to find the name of chord triads using intervals. The chart below illustrates how a chord name can be found by examining the numbers of the major scale in which it is derived from.

C Chord Triad

Notes of Chord

Numbers of Chord

C Major

C E G

1 3 5

C Minor

C Eb G

1 b3 5

C Augmented

C E G#

1 #3 #5

C Diminished

C Eb Gb

1 b3 b5

Suspended Chords

A chord which has its third either raised to the 4th or lowered to the 2nd scale degree.

There has been some confusion about suspended chords. I once saw a chord labeled as a Minor sus 4. This is an erroneous name because by definition, a suspended chord has no third, but a minor chord has to have a flatted third. The intended chord was a Minor add 11 chord.

The following is a list of most, if not all, of the possible C chords and their corresponding names.

Notes of Chord

Chord Name

C E G

C Major

C Eb G

C Minor

C E G#

C Augmented

C Eb Gb

C Diminished

C Eb Gb B

C Half-diminished

C Eb Gb Bb

C Diminished 7

C F G

C Suspended 4

C D G

C Suspended 2

C F G Bb

C Suspended 7

C F G Bb D

C Suspended 9

C F G Bb D F

C Suspended 11

C F G Bb D F A

C Suspended 13

C E G B

C Major 7

C E G Bb

C Dominant 7

C Eb G Bb

C Minor 7

C E G A

C Major 6

C Eb G A

C Minor 6

C E G A D

C 6/9

C Eb G A D

C Min 6/9

C Eb G B

C Minor/Major 7

C E G# B

C Maj 7 Sharp 5

C E G# Bb

C Dom 7 Sharp 5

C E Gb B

C Maj 7 Flat 5

C E Gb Bb

C Dom 7 Flat 5

C Eb G# Bb

C Min 7 Sharp 5

C E G Bb D#

C Dom 7 Sharp 9

C E G Bb Db

C Dom 7 Flat 9

C E G B D

C Maj 9

C E G Bb D

C Dom 9

C Eb G Bb D

C Minor 9

C E G# B D

C Maj 9 Sharp 5

C E G# Bb D

C Dom 9 Sharp 5

C Eb G Bb Db

C Min 7 Flat 9

C E Gb B D

C Maj 9 Flat 5

C E Gb Bb D

C Dom 9 Flat 5

C Eb G Bb D

C Min 9

C Eb Gb Bb D

C Min 9 Flat 5

C Eb G B D

C Min/Maj 9

C E G B D#

C Maj 9 Sharp 5

C E G B Db

C Maj 9 Flat 5

C E G Bb D#

C Dom 9 Sharp 5

C E G B Db

C Dom 9 Flat 5

C E G# B D#

C Maj 7 Sharp 5 Sharp 9

C E G# Bb D#

C Dom 7 Sharp 5 Sharp 9

C E G# B D#

C Maj 7 Sharp 5 Flat 9

C E G# Bb D#

C Dom 7 Sharp 5 Flat 9

C E Gb B D#

C Maj 7 Flat 5 Sharp 9

C E Gb Bb D#

C Dom 7 Flat 5 Sharp 9

C E G B D F

C Maj 11

C E G# B D F

C Maj 11 Sharp 5

C E G B D# F

C Maj 11 Sharp 9

C E G# B D# F

C Maj 11 Sharp 5 Sharp 9

C E Gb B D F

C Maj 11 Flat 5

C E G B Db F

C Maj 11 Flat 9

C E Gb B Db F

C Maj 11 Flat 5 Flat 9

C E G Bb D F

C Dom 11

C E G# Bb D F

C Dom 11 Sharp 5

C E G Bb D# F

C Dom 11 Sharp 9

C E G# Bb D# F

C Dom 11 Sharp 5 Sharp 9

C E Gb Bb D F

C Dom 11 Flat 5

C E G Bb Db F

C Dom 11 Flat 9

C E Gb Bb Db F

C Dom 11 Flat 5 Flat 9

C E G Bb D F A

C Dom 13

C E G B D F A

C Maj 13

C E G Bb Db F A

C 13 Flat 9

C E G Bb D# F A

C 13 Sharp 9

C E G Bb D# F A

C 13 Sharp 9

* "Dom" is an abbreviation for Dominant. All 7th chord names without the "Dominant" or "Major" qualifier (C 7th) are implied to be Dominant seven chords. "Half-diminished" is also called "Minor 7 flat 5". "Augmented" is an alternative name for any chord with a sharp 5. Ex; C Dom 7 Sharp 5 = C Augmented 7

The names of the chords are cumulative. In other words, if a chord is called a ninth, it must contain all of the triad numbers below nine. An eleventh chord must contain 1 3 5 7 9 11 in order to be called a true "eleventh" chord. If a chord does not hold to the pattern, say the alleged eleventh is missing the 9, containing 1 3 5 7 11, then it is said to be a "seven add eleven". For instance, C E G B F is a C major 7 add eleven, while C E G B D F is a legitimate C major eleven chord. Here are some more examples:

A chord voicing is different from a chord inversion in that a note can be skipped or repeated in a chord voicing. Again, the best way to teach about chord voicings is to illustrate them:

C G B E is a chord voicing of C major 7.

C B E G is a chord voicing of C major 7

G C E G is a chord voicing of C major 7.

C G C B E is a chord voicing of C major 7.

B G E C E is a chord voicing of C major 7.

As chords get bigger (elevenths and thirteenths), most musicians will tend to drop one note of the chord. Usually, (this is not a rule) the eleventh is the first note to go in a thirteenth chord, thus technically making the chord a 9 add 13 (assuming no other note is dropped).

One thing to keep in mind about voicings and inversions is that with bigger chords, voicings/inversions become increasingly important as to how the chord sounds. For instance, for the G major 7 chord, voiced G B D F#, this chord can sound "jazzy", while voiced B D F# G is too disonant because of the F# and G being placed right next to each other. The latter voicing is a rarely used one for this chord.

In the notes above, I talked about some alternate names for chords (Half-diminished/Minor 7 b5 is one example). But some chords have alternate names which can be chosen based upon how the chord is being used within the context of the song/progression. Some examples are:

Notes of Chord

Chord Name

Chord Name

A C E G

A minor 7

C major 6 (3rd inversion)

B D F A

B half-diminished

D minor 6 (3rd inversion)

G C D

G suspended 4

C suspended 2 (1st inversion)

Augmented chords have 3 possible names, usually chosen based upon which inversion is being used:

Notes of Augmented Chord

Chord Name

C E G#

C Augmented

E G# C

E Augmented

G# C E

G# Augmented

So, which name should be used in which situations? Whichever is easiest. But, a general rule of thumb is that the note in which the bass note (played by a bass player or left hand of piano) is playing, is usually the root of the chord in question. So, if a B D F A is being played over a D bass note, then it is probably best to call this chord a D minor 6. Of course if the bass note is an F, A, G or other note besides B or D, this rule cannot be applied.

Polychords are technically two or more chords put together. But most, if not all polychords are really part of a bigger chord. For example:

C E G B D = C major 9

Consists of:

C E G = C major

G B D = G major

I think of polychords as another way of thinking about large chords. As chords get bigger, it can be easier to think of them as consisting of two or more smaller chords. This is especially true for piano players.

Here is a list of a few polychords and their "real" chord names.

Notes of polychord

Polychord

"Real" name

B D# F# A

B Major/D# Dim

B Dom 7

D F# A C E

D Major/A Minor

D Dom 9

E G B D F#

E Minor/B Minor

E Min 9

C E G Bb Eb

C Major/Eb Major

C Dom 7 Sharp 9

Thinking in terms of polychords can also help with orchestration. For instance, with many instruments, one could orchestrate the piano to play a C Major and the guitar to play an Eb Major (1st inversion), thus together they are playing the C Dom 7 Sharp 9 chord (see above).

A "chord" (see note below) which contains no 3rd (suspended chords, and chords containing 3 or more notes exempted)

Notes of power chord

Chord Name

C G

C 5 (or C power chord)

G D

G 5 (or G power chord)

E B E

E 5 (or E power chord)

* NOTE: Technically, a powerchord is not really a true "chord" because, by definition, a "chord" has to have a minumum of 3 notes. Powerchords are also called "5" chords, notated as C 5.

Powerchords are neither minor or major and therefore either scale can be used over top of them. Only when a scale is used over them, is a major or minor tonality implied to the listener. Therefore, one can easily alternate between being in a major key or minor key (thus using chords which are derived from either number system).

The following chord progression illustrates this:

C 5, F Major, G Dom 7, C5, Bb Major, Eb Major

When examined, the first three chords of this progression, are derived from the key of C Major, while the last three chords are derived from C minor, for C Maj, F Maj and G Dom 7 are the I, IV and V chords of C *Major*, while C Min, Bb Maj and Eb Maj are the i, VII and III chords of the key of C *Minor*.

The blues scale works very well over these types of progressions being that it contains both the minor and major third in it. A blues scale contains both the Eb of C minor and E of C major. One could also simply play the C major scale over the first 3 chords, and then transition to the C minor scale for the last 3 chords.

Power chords are especially popular among rock and blues music. The power chord is used a lot by guitar players because the guitar's standard tuning and the distortion's effect upon the sound of the major third.

C Maj/Bb is the notation for the C major chord being played over a Bb bass note. The Bb note is not found within the C major chord, but together, this slash chord is a C Dom 7th. My favorite slash chord is the Bb Maj/C because it is an excellent substition for the C eleventh chord.

Chords are based on harmony, using every second note in a dominant scale, starting with the root note. The dominant scale is the same as the major scale, except the 7th note which is a semitone flatter. The table below shows the notes of the dominant scale, with examples in the key of C and A. Every second note in the scale is shown in red:

Notes in chords are referred to by their note number, so that a single scheme can be used, regardless of the chord's root note, or the key and scale you're using. In the above examples, the 5th note is G for a C chord, and E for an A chord.

Selecting every 2nd note in the dominant scale gives us:

the root note, the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 11th and 13th

Each of these notes may be:

included as-is

flattened (1 semitone lower)

raised (1 semitone higher)

omitted (deliberately or for convenience)

What is a Barre Chord?
A barre chord takes its name from the role of the 1st finger of your left hand. This finger acts as a "bar" across
the fingerboard, depressing all six strings and replacing the nut (the ivory piece at the top of the neck). By using
your first finger as a "bar," you can move many of the open chords you have learned up and down on the
fingerboard.

To understand this, first grab your guitar and play an E chord as shown. Note in order for the first finger to
be used as a barre, the fingering has to be changed slightly; use your 2nd, 3rd and 4th fingers instead of the
usual 1st, 2nd and 3rd fingers. Now move the chord up one fret and lay your 1st finger across the 1st fret,
covering all six strings. You are now holding your first barre chord, F.
This is essentially the same as the F chord
you have learned in the open chords section, only the 1st finger barres all six strings instead of just the 1st and
2nd strings. In the same manner, move this F chord up two frets, 1st finger barring the 3rd fret and maintaining
the E chord shape. You now have an alternative way to play an G chord

Power Chords
A powerchord is a chord which contains no 3rd (suspended chords, and chords containing 3 or more notes exempted). Technically, a powerchord is not really a true "chord" because, by definition, a "chord" has to have a minumum of 3 notes. Powerchords are also called "5" chords, notated as C 5.

Notes of power chord

Chord Name

C G

C 5 (or C power chord)

G D

G 5 (or G power chord)

E B E

E 5 (or E power chord)

Powerchords are neither minor or major and therefore either scale can be used over top of them. Only when a scale is used over them, is a major or minor tonality implied to the listener. Therefore, one can easily alternate between being in a major key or minor key (thus using chords which are derived from either number system).

The following chord progression illustrates this:

C 5, F Major, G Dom 7, C5, Bb Major, Eb Major

When examined, the first three chords of this progression, are derived from the key of C Major, while the last three chords are derived from C minor, for C Maj, F Maj and G Dom 7 are the I, IV and V chords of C *Major*, while C Min, Bb Maj and Eb Maj are the i, VII and III chords of the key of C *Minor*.

The blues scale works very well over these types of progressions being that it contains both the minor and major third in it. A blues scale contains both the Eb of C minor and E of C major. One could also simply play the C major scale over the first 3 chords, and then transition to the C minor scale for the last 3 chords.

Power chords are especially popular among rock and blues music. The power chord is used a lot by guitar players because the guitar's standard tuning and the distortion's effect upon the sound of the major third.
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Read more on Power Chords and general Chord Theory

More on Power Chords

my new teacher is teaching me about 20 chords. He says it will help me find my way around the fretboard better. It does seem to be helping. Why?

Because most music is chord based. If you were able to analyse your pieces
at your present state of learning you would probably find that the structures
consist of the notes of chords or parts of chords. The notes can be either in
the original order of the chord or in any other order or combination. It is
possible to "see" these shapes both on the guitar neck or on a keyboard and
even on the music as basic patterns or shapes which are constant.

For example a basic major chord consists of notes 1,3,5 of the major scale. A
minor chord of notes 1, b3,5 and a diminished chord of 1 .b3 ,b5.
If you carefully analyse the distance apart of the notes of those chords you will
find that they are built either of notes 2 tones apart (4 frets) or notes 1 1/2
tones apart (3 frets). 2 tone notes are called major thirds and 1 1/2 tone ones
are minor thirds.

Now write a C major scale vertically with a C major chord acrosss the top. The
second two notes of the C major chord now form the basis of two more columns
which become a series of vertically arranged chords.

This system is called a harmonised scale and the 3 note chords are called
triads. A tune can be given chords to fill it out using this system which gives
rise to the wealth of "pieces"that we play on our various harmony instuments
such as guitar and piano. These three note chords if played as above are said
to be in root position and when they are played out of order they follow this
system

There are many variations and permutations to the above system but these are
the building blocks of basic harmony. There is also a system called the three
chord trick where a piece can be harmonised using chords 1 4 and 5 i.e. C F
and G (often made a seventh chord) chords in the key or scale of C major.
Seventh chords are found by adding a further 4th column of notes which give
rise to so called dominant seventh, minor seventh and natural or major seventh
chords and another special chord the diminished seventh with its own set of
complications.